iSAM Funds UK Ltd Makes New Investment in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM)

iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE:MSM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $433,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC increased its position in MSC Industrial Direct by 36.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 25,490 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,195,000 after acquiring an additional 6,864 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in MSC Industrial Direct during the fourth quarter worth $34,735,000. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its holdings in shares of MSC Industrial Direct by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 26,035 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,945,000 after buying an additional 2,136 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in MSC Industrial Direct by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 155,601 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,622,000 after buying an additional 1,418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in MSC Industrial Direct in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,654,000. 79.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of MSC Industrial Direct from $83.00 to $74.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on MSC Industrial Direct from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded MSC Industrial Direct to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, April 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $82.20.

MSC Industrial Direct Price Performance

Shares of MSC Industrial Direct stock traded down $0.35 on Monday, reaching $78.71. The stock had a trading volume of 353,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 641,096. The business's 50 day moving average is $77.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.76. The company has a market cap of $4.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.93, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.10 and a 1 year high of $90.81.

MSC Industrial Direct (NYSE:MSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The industrial products company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $891.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $908.30 million. MSC Industrial Direct had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 6.21%. The company's revenue was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

MSC Industrial Direct Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. MSC Industrial Direct's dividend payout ratio is 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MSC Industrial Direct

In other MSC Industrial Direct news, Director Mitchell Jacobson bought 27,642 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $69.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,928,582.34. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,951,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $136,171,853.25. This trade represents a 1.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 18.30% of the company's stock.

About MSC Industrial Direct

MSC Industrial Direct Co, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's MRO products include cutting tools, measuring instruments, tooling components, metalworking products, fasteners, flat stock products, raw materials, abrasives, machinery hand and power tools, safety and janitorial supplies, plumbing supplies, materials handling products, power transmission components, and electrical supplies.